Being the Light in the Darkness Through Storytelling and Story Xperiential

Koraima was born in Santiago Papasquiaro, Durango, Mexico and lived in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon until she was seven years old, when her family moved to the United States.

She is as student at Lawrence Dale (L.D.) Bell High School in Hurst, Texas.

Tell us about your current Story Xperiential story/project and how you feel about winning a Story Xperiential Award. The story, Luz: A Creature in the Lightbulb, was a story that didn't came to my head right away, I was planning to make a more dark story that had nothing to do with a lightbulb. After talking with a friend of mine, who is really hilarious, he pointed at a lightbulb in the ceiling that wasn't working very well and said to me, "If someone was there, they sure would be suffering." and those words stayed in my head for the whole day and it became the idea of "Luz" started.

Luz in her world - within a lightbulb.

Doing this story was a bit complicated to make because I had to make two perspectives of the story, the perspective of the man and his family, and also Luz, and keep it understandable while also maintaining it short length. I am so happy about how this story ended up and I am so proud that it was selected by others to be the winner of the Grand Prize! It was so fun to make this story and it was a completely big, new experience for me.

How did you hear about Story Xperiential?

My animation teacher introduced me to Story Xperiential in 2024, and even though I didn't place in the award ceremony, by the end of the program, I understood how it worked and I wanted to try this year (2025) to see if I had gotten better in my storytelling skills, and it seems I did!

Koraima's rough sketch and hand-written outline.

What challenges did you face during the program, and how did you overcome them?

A challenge I faced was that, while making the three acts, I just put a lot of information that wasn't needed, but, thanks to the feedback of my peers, I understood that I was explaining what was already understood, and that by explaining it I was making the story more confusing. Thanks to these comments, I took out details that shouldn't have been in there, and by doing that I made the story shorter but also a lot more understandable.

Can you share how the peer feedback aspect of the program influenced your storytelling projects?

My peers saw my acts and asked me questions and recommended stuff like subtitles, sound effects, color, a cleaner sketch, and music. I had some of this stuff in mind for the editing part, but the feedback of these great people helped me realize how needed these elements were and how I shouldn't forget about any of these things, and that's when I wrote down all the things that my peers questioned about my story and the stuff that they recommended to me to change and to add. I am so thankful for all the help they gave to me. A comment was a step further to make my story more successful, I guarantee it. 

How has the program impacted you?

Story Xperiential has impacted me in a positive way. Thanks to this program, I noticed how important it is to receive feedback from others, and more importantly, to take notice of this feedback and not just ignore them and feel angry for them not understanding your story, instead of taking it as advice. I am talking from experience, since in 2024 I felt that way but I learned a lot. I also learned how all the steps to create the story are equally important. All the parts have to be taken care of with the same importance and also the same attention. The last thing that Story Xperiential has taught me is that a story well thought out is a story that will be well received and seen. What I mean by this is that you shouldn't take it easy when you are planning the plot for your story and also with creating your characters, try to take every part of it with attention and look, not only by yourself but also with the opinions of others, if everything is going as you would like it to.

Luz feeling scared in the dark after the light is switched off.

What were some unexpected benefits you experienced from participating in Story Xperiential?

Some benefits I gained for this program were that I learned that to tell a story you shouldn't need words all the time, so that was a benefit because I didn't have to take my time on voice acting and I just had to narrate the beginning and the end of the short story. 

What advice would you give to someone considering joining the Story Xperiential program?

For someone that is planning to join Story Xperiential, I would tell them this: "You should use the first time as a test, to discover the territory you are stepping in, understand how the stuff works around here and also, try your best since the beginning. I promise that trying your best is not your limit, it's just where you feel comfortable staying at. If since the first time you give your all, you'll surpass TRYING your best to go and DO your best. If you follow this, you'll probably go far in the next time you are in this program. Good luck!"

What projects are you busy with now and what have you been doing since you completed your Story Xperiential project?

While I was working on Luz: A Creature Inside the Lightbulb, I was also working on an assignment for my class, an assignment that I am still in the process to finish. This assignment is an educational animation, teaching young high schoolers about the 10 basic clouds that there are in our world. With these animations, I am not really interested on putting a lot of detail of what is said, I am trying my best to animate as good as I can. I am feeling really confident in this project, I just feel I need a bit more time to finish it. To have more time, I'll ask for a computer to bring home and work from home, because I really wanted to be the best I can do. I am also working with a woman who sings songs that have animated videos, and I will help her make the animations for her videos. I am working on one right now that I'll probably finish in a month, maximum two.

Luz finally finding her place in the world thanks to her unique ability to create sparks!

You can view Koraima's full storyreel here.